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COMMUNITY BULLETIN BOARD 18 | THE COLONY NEWS | SEPTEMBER 2021 | SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS By Kathy Sullivan Do you know how lucky we are? People travel from all over the world and spend huge amounts of money to visit the beautiful sandy beaches of California. I know I get stuck at home – maybe playing too much bridge in the Clubhouse, or spending time on the computer working on my photography – and I forget to get out and enjoy what we have and why we live here. I am making an educated guess, but of all the beaches in Southern California I think perhaps the one most visited by our tourist guests is Venice Beach. Venice Beach is known for its Bohemian lifestyle and is a magnet for characters, and there are lots of them. In fact, character-watching is the number one thing to do at Venice Beach. Because of space restrictions, I was not able to put in photos of the free-spirited Venice Boardwalk with its funky shops, street vendors, street performers, foodie shops, etc. The saddest aspect to Venice Beach is the homeless – they are everywhere. While I was there, I saw the police come in with clean-up crews and take away some of the homeless hangouts. A few blocks away from the ocean, there are blocks of old, old RVs and vans parked on the streets, with their sewage running down into the drainage systems. I understand it to a point. If I were homeless, I would much rather be in Southern California than in St. Paul, Minnesota! I don't want you to get bad thoughts about Venice Beach. It is fun! There is so much to see and do, and it makes for a great day or overnight trip. On top of everything, Venice Beach is what it should be – a beautiful, Southern California beach where spending a day can be like every other beach, with the added feature of being entirely entertained. Venice Beach Graffiti artists and mural artists seem to be encouraged, and everything that can be painted is painted – even the trunks of the palm trees are covered in graffiti! Some of the graffiti is surprisingly beautiful.